Whoa! Take a breath folks. Please.

This is not a fly v gear thing. Or a PETA thing. And Occupy Skagit is NOT a fly fishing only group. OS is a mixed group of anglers whose sole mission has been to re-open the Skagit system to the same wild steelhead season that we had from 1981 through 2009, that has been closed since the 2010 season.

OS has encouraged, maybe been a catalyst, and the state and tribal co-managers finally developed a Resource Management Plan (RMP) as required under ESA regulations. NMFS has been reviewing the Plan since Nov. 2016 and preparing the Preliminary Evaluation (PEPD) and Environmental Assessment (EA) and biological opinion (BO) since that time. The PEPD was open for public comment from Dec. 8, 2017 through Jan. 8, 2018.

Most of the comments were supportive, some were opposed, and some were supportive but with conditions. Certain of those commenters claimed to support a Skagit season, but want to wait for recover (without identifying what recovery is or even looks like), or want more resource data - to a degree never before done anywhere for any fishery in the world that I know of, and more detailed monitoring than what the Plan specifies, which would amount to far more monitoring than NMFS requires for any other fishing that occurs where ESA-listed fish are present. In short, these comments intend to require conditions that will never be met. That leads me to believe that those commenters do not really support having a season and would prefer that the river remain closed forever.

I began receiving information the other day that even though the comment period closed a couple months ago that NMFS was getting a lot of last minute input in opposition to the Skagit season. That is why I asked interested anglers who support the season to contact Barry, just in case he has any lingering doubts.

In candor, is the RMP perfect? Of course it isn't. Perfect is not one of the choices on the menu. Those who insist on perfect, like some of the opponents, will never get a season. Nonetheless, make no mistake, the Skagit has been the most conservatively managed steelhead fishery in the entire state. Skagit steelhead are not endangered nor threatened. The Skagit River is a victim of geography. If the Skagit were north of the 49th parallel and in B.C., it would be the healthiest steelhead population in southern B.C. It can support the traditional CNR recreational fishery and the incidental and directed take by the treaty tribes. The Plan is designed to continue the conservative management of Skagit steelhead.

This is not a gear type issue. It's not a treaty v non-treaty issue. The issue I've asked you to weigh in on is between middle of the road reasonable people like you and me, and the radical, I want it may way or no way of certain dot org commenters. Besides, we already know that in a perfect world the regulations would just be designed to keep Todd and his pink worms off the rivers (jk).

Sg